Page 2 RAIN January 1977 RAIN access Q\_GRICULTURE) Proposals for Vermont s Agriculture and Food Future, Report of the Governor's Commission on Food, january 1976, $10 (summary soq) from:. Vermont Dept. of Agriculture 116 State Street Montpelier, VT 05607 An excellent complement to the above research studies which helps round out the process for change in one spec!fic region. Commission recommendatwns to the government include setti~g up communitv canneries, commumty compostin.g projects, farm~rs' markets, grain storag~ and cooperatives. (TB) Wild Foods Cookbook and Field Guide, Billy Joe Tatum, 1976, $4.95 from: Workman Publishing Co. 231 East 51st New York, NY 10022 Lots of good ideas here on how to find and how to eat such free goodies as purslane, dandelions, lamb's quarters, fern fronds and sorrel. Its dessert section was a disappointment as I was looking for some alternative sweeteners and virtually all call for sugar (not _even honey). But I think I'll add this to my cookbook shelf. (LdeM) Center for Studies in Food SelfSufficiency Vermont Institute of Community Involvement 90 Main Street Burlington, VT 05401 . These folks have carried out a wellorganized study of Vermont's agriculture and the potentials for change towards more self-reliant patterns for food production and consumption. Land, Bread and Histmy ($2.50). Explores the institutional changes in Vermont's agriculture from a time when it was largely self-sufficient to increasing impacts of outside transportation and land developments that caused a specialization in dairy, maple syrup, fruit and poultry products. It surveys the state's present food consumption and marketing patterns and develops a methodology for aligning agricultural land capability in relation to diet choices. Agricultural land is shown to be avail~ble to feed much more than the present population on present diets and change to a diary/ vegetarian or largely vegetarian diet is shown to reduce agricultural land needs by up to 40%. (TB) Ene1-gy Utilization i11 Vermo11t Agriculture. Summary (50q), Vol. 1Maple and Apple Production ($1.50), Vol. 2-Egg and Dairy Production ($1.50). A~full net energy accounting of various existing options for different sectors of the state's agriculture. Size offers little adYantage in maple or apple production. Commercial egg operations are more efficient than homestead operations, while small dairy farms are more than large ones. Overall state agricultural efficiency is 5.5%-requiring input of 18 calories per calorie of output. Suggestions for improved efficiency are given, as well as social concerns which should be included in determining state farm policy. (TB) Wheels of Fortune, 1976, from: Center for Rural Affairs P.O. Box 504 Walthill, NE 68067 Emergence of new· patterns is always a signal to delve into what lies behind them and what implications th~sc forces have beyond the surface events. Center-pivot irrigation in Nebraska is on the surface a shift to capital and energy-intensive farming. But underneath it represents a shift to investment schemes, tax shelters and lack of selfinterest in the long-term viability of soils, farming practices and rural society. Big circles on the plains spell bad news. This is a good analysis of what's happening and why, although_it doesn't continue its analysis strongly mto the brdad implications of such events. (TB) Agriculture and Economic Growth, U.S. Department of Agriculture, 1963, Economic Research Service, Agricultural Report No. 28 (A93.28:28), 25q from: U.S. Government Printing Office Washington, DC 20402 Economics ofSize in Farming, by j. Patrick Madden, Agricultural Report No. 107 (A93.28:107), 55q from: U.S. Government Printing Office Washington, DC 20402 U.S.D.A.'sown research findings on the relationship between farm size and efficiency of production. In case after case. economies of scale could be achieved equally well on one and two person farms. (TB) 12• ullfOI'IIY wood '::.0 How to Build WCQ)©JD) JD)~WIIOO ~~1f The Food Dryer's Drying Booklet, by John Magee and Connie Dexter, 197 5, $2 and How to Build Food Drying Equipment, by John Magee, 1975, $2 from: California Wood Plans P.O. Box 541 San Luis Obispo, CA 93406 It feels good when someone just lays out the options for you and gives .vou
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